Hi everyone. Today we are featuring the "Crown of Stones," by C.L. Sneider. The "Crown of Stones," is a complete Epic Fantasy trilogy box set filled with adventure. Check out the excerpt below and all the details on the set. Make sure to preorder your copy to have it sent to you directly on release day. Happy reading everyone :).
Book 1, Magic-Price
Bodies pressed in on me on all sides. More were piled up beneath my feet. The grass, gorged with assorted fluids and trampled remains, squished under my boots as I carved open my opponent’s chest, pushed him aside, and moved onto the next.
There was always a next. The Langorians were a swarm…an inexhaustible, savage, mindless swarm. And we had no choice but to become like them to survive. To become animals going at each other, mechanically pushing against the tide, battering whatever stood in our way with whatever we had: clubs, axes, swords, knives—our bruised, bleeding bare hands. Fighting for days, months, years striving to hold out against an enemy that knew nothing of mercy, an enemy stronger and far more brutal than us. We’d become something less than we were.
And we were still losing.
I grabbed the queen’s arm and steered her out of the fray. “We can’t take much more of this.” Needing to be heard, I drew her close. “We should pull back.”
“Pull back?” Queen Aylagar Arcana yanked herself free. She gave me a wild, defiant look. Full of passion and reckless resolve, it made her exotic features come alive. “My order stands. We press on, Troy. As always.”
I shook my head. “Our numbers are dwindling too fast. We can’t win this.”
“We can and we will.” Aylagar raised a hand. She touched my face, and the sound of metal clashing and men screaming seemed to fade away. Brushing back the blood-splattered white strands that had come loose from my braid, she ran a finger down the strong line of my jaw. “Trust me, Love. The Langorians will not have Rella.”
“How can you still believe that?”
“Because I must. Because I have faith.”
“Ayla…” I hesitated. But it had to be said. “I saw the messenger arrive from Kabri. I know he carried orders from the king. You can’t keep ignoring them.”
She dropped her hand and backed up. “My husband is a fool. I don’t care how many messengers he dispatches from his throne. He is not out here. The blood of these men bathes my skin, not his. This is my war, Troy. Mine!” she cried. “We fight. We die. We go on until we prevail—by my command. I will not surrender. That is the way of it. That is the only way.”
My throat went dry at the fire in her. The way she stood, outlined by the backdrop of chaos, flanked by the crackling flames that consumed our camp—with sweat beading on her dark skin and battle-lust glazing her stare—I wanted to pull her into my arms. I wanted to go back to this morning on the furs of her tent when Aylagar’s flawless ebony skin was on me. Where status and race didn’t matter, and death felt far away. Mostly, I wanted to believe as she did. I wanted to believe her, as I had so many times before, that every battle brought us closer to victory. That persistence was our greatest strength, and it would carry us through.
But this was it. King Draken of Langor was throwing everything he had at us, making one final push to wipe us all out. To, once and for all, lay claim to the land his forefathers sought and failed to conquer. Surrendering was unacceptable. She was right in that. Yet, Aylagar had lost her way. Somewhere along the line, the outcome stopped mattering to her as much as the fight, and my affection, my awe of her, had blinded me for far too long.
“Give me the order,” I demanded. “Let me shift the odds.”
Her dismissal was quick. “No.”
“We can’t keep going like this, sword for sword, day after day, until there’s none of us left. Let me cast hell down on these black-hearted bastards.”
“I have given you my answer. And it is no different than the last hundred times.”
I moved closer. “You know what I can do. My magic can give us an advantage the Langorians can’t match. We can stop this fucking never-ending war, Ayla. We can stop it together, with steel and magic. If you’ll just—”
“You are Shinree,” she hissed. “Your kind are meant to do as they are told. Yet, after six years in the ranks you still push for something that I will never bend to.”
“Then you’re as big a fool as the king.”
Her hand, that only a moment ago caressed me, struck my face. “My husband forced your service in this army upon us both. And from day one, when you stood in my tent, a young man eager to please, drooling with the urge to cast, I made it plain that this conflict would not be solved with magic. It’s dishonorable. I don’t trust it. I forbid it. You are my best soldier, Troy. I have given you free reign in my bed, but not out here. Not in battle. Ever. Is that clear?”
Staring at her, my heart went cold. “I don’t think I can do this anymore. Fighting as half a man. Ashamed of what I am because you don’t approve. I’m not just a soldier.” I held up the sword in my hand. I called to the stones embedded in the leather-wrapped handle, and they began to glow. Their vibrations pressed in through my skin, down into my veins, and the uncertainty washed away. “I’m a Shinree soldier.”
“Put that magic away,” she scolded. “Do you want to kill us all?”
“I can control it.”
“Can you?” Her eyes were harsh. “Can you promise me that when your spell steals the strength it needs to be born, that it won’t steal from my men? That it won’t steal from me? Your magic is a disease, Ian. Your need for it, your addiction, clouds your judgment. It threatens us all and undermines my orders.”
“Your orders contradict my duty to keep Rella safe. I’ve tried to pretend they didn’t. I’ve tried to be what you wanted. But I can’t. I’m Shinree, Ayla. I am magic. And if you don’t untie my hands, we will all die here today.”
The Crown of Stones
Complete Trilogy Box Set
by: C.L. Schneider
Genre: Epic Fantasy
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All he wanted was to end the war. Fate had other plans.
This box set doesn’t just contain The Crown of Stones Trilogy. It holds an adventure that transports you to a shattered land in need of rescue, an immersive reading experience that drops you into the mind of exiled soldier Ian Troy: a man born with an addiction to magic, living in a world where magic is reviled, and its users are enslaved.
This dark, epic saga comes to life as you journey across the war-torn realms of Mirra’kelan and meet its ever-evolving cast of characters all struggling to survive and find their own path to peace. You’ll cross realms devastated and divided by years of conflict, molded by secrets and lies, and governed by prejudice and fear. Learn their tangled history. Unearth the lore. Discover the true origins—and the danger—of the ancient Shinree’s powerful magic.
Travel with Ian as he returns to the past to save the future, crossing time to solve the mystery of The Crown of Stones, his true connection to the artifact, and the role it played in shaping all their lives.
Included in this box set:
Magic-Price (Book 1)
Magic-Scars (Book 2)
Magic-Borne (Book 3)
A Sneak Peek at The Wandering Isles (Soulbound Journeys Book 1)
Releases Aug 20 – PreOrder Now!
Check out the Book Trailer Here:
C.L. Schneider
C. L. Schneider is an award-winning author of immersive fantasy fiction, including The Crown of Stones Trilogy and the Nite Fire Series. While fantasy is her main focus, she also pens the occasional horror or apocalyptic tale. Born in a small Kansas town, Schneider resides in New York’s scenic Hudson Valley Region with her husband and two sons. To learn more about the worlds she creates, please visit her website at www.clschneiderauthor.com or connect with C. L. Schneider on social media, where she is an active part of the indie author community.
Follow C.L. Schneider at the Following Links:
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